Comfort and Reflection
by snowflake19
Summary: Will's thoughts as he looks at the fresh grave. Spoilers for season 2 finale!


**A/N: Sorry that this is so late but it's for the New Year's Post-a-thon. Spoilers for season 2 finale!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Robin Hood or the characters. I'm just writing them.**

Digging Marian's grave was one of the hardest things Will ever had to do. The only other time he dug a grave was for his mother a few years ago, just after the day she drew her last breath. Her death was an unnecessary one to everyone but her. She did it for her family. For her sons.

And Marian...Marian had died for England. For the people. For her friends. For Robin. But it left Robin the job to bury his wife in a foreign land, thousands of miles away from the land they both loved.

One glance at his friend and Will could see his broken heart written over his face so clearly. He remembered seeing that exact same look in a dank cave the year before. The only difference was that this time, it was for real. There was no hemlock that had tricked them. No more second chances.

Will closed his eyes, feeling a knot in his chest tighten. How could Robin and Marian deserve this fate? Both had fought tirelessly and selflessly to save England and the poor, to do good, and fell in love along the way. And they were rewarded with heartache and death. This wasn't fair. Not at all.

Fingers gently tugged on his arm and his eyes opened to see Djaq looking up at him, brown eyes dimmed with sorrow. Everyone had already left, probably to return to Bassam's house. He had offered everyone a place to stay until they were ready to go back to England.

"Let's go back," she said softly, squeezing his arm, "It's getting late." Will seemed to have lost his voice as he gazed at her - almost through her. An image flashed surfaced in his mind - it was no longer a lifeless Marian but a lifeless Djaq and Robin stood in Will's place as Will carried his dead lover to her resting place...

He drew in a sharp breath as he felt a warm hand press to his cheek, eyes suddenly sliding into focus. No, he thought, that image was a lie and she was standing right next to him: alive, well, and safe.

"Will." His name opened a locked gate within him. He pulled her to him, wrapping arms around her as her arms wound around him. He knew that she was concerned about his behavior - her mind was probably raking through a list of possible cures that could calm him but the only one he needed was her. Nothing else but her.

They stood in each other's arms for a few moments, silently drawing comfort from one another. She was waiting for him to speak up, to soothe her concerns drawn from his behavior. Finally, he spoke up.

"It could've been anyone," he murmured, "It could've been you." His arms tightened around her as she moved but only enough to reach up and cup his face so their gazes locked.

"Neither of us was there."

"But earlier, in the desert..." Her eyes narrowed slightly, probably thinking back to his suggestion that she should've stayed with Bassam.

"I would not have stayed behind. We survived. We're here now, aren't we?" Will pursed his lips . In the back of his mind, he knew that he was being ridiculous, that he was being unreasonable. But Will had also faced loss - his mother, his father, the England he once loved. It terrified him to think of what might happen if he lost Djaq. They were always in risky situations but now that one of them was gone forever, that situation seemed uncomfortably too close now.

He couldn't let that happen. He wasn't going to let that happen.

When Djaq saw that he wasn't going to respond, she sighed softly, taking his hands from her waist to hold in hers.

"Come on, the others are waiting." He nodded as their fingers intertwined. Silently, he said one last prayer for Marian before they started towards Bassam's house where physical comforts of food and rest awaited them. But the physical comfort wasn't what he needed. All he needed was her strength, her comfort, and her love.

_"When you feel that all is lost, hold onto your love at any cost."_


End file.
